During construction of buildings, bridges and the like, it is common to have the ends of steel reinforcing bars protruding from walls, columns and the like during various stages of the construction. The protruding ends of the reinforcing bars present a hazard to workmen who might fall on the bars.
Certain safety regulations in most locations now require that caps or covers be placed on the ends of the protruding bars so as to protect workers that might fall onto the bars. Occupational Safety and Health Standards Boards (OSHA) have established certain standards for such caps to insure that they are of sufficient strength and durability that the cap will maintain its integrity even under all reasonable conditions that a person might fall on the protruding bars. A typical standard would require that the caps be able to withstand the impact of a 250 pound weight dropped from a height of 10 feet without the protruding rod penetrating the cap. Minimum sizes of the cap are also established so that the top of the cap is substantially greater than the diameter of the bar on which it is mounted.
A typical existing cap for these purposes is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,568,708.
Some existing caps have a steel plate incorporated within a molded plastic cap to add strength thereto and to further resist puncturing of the cap when a load is imposed on the top of a rod. Such caps are relatively heavy for handling in bulk quantities, and the shipping costs thereof are obviously expensive. The incorporation of a metal plate in the plastic molding adds to the expense of manufacture through both cost of material and assembly expense.
It is, therefore, a principal object of this invention to provide a reinforcing bar cover that will withstand existing drop tests without having a steel plate inserted therein.
A further object of this invention is to provide a protective cover for reinforcing bars that is relatively light in weight, and efficiently and economically capable of being manufactured.
These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.